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FasTracks program is on slower path than planned
Highlands Ranch residents waiting for an extension of light rail service into Douglas County will have to wait a little longer.
The Regional Transportation District board voted 14-1 Tuesday, Aug. 19, to scale back the 10-year, $5.2 billion mass transit plan called FasTracks.
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Highlands Ranch residents waiting for an extension of light rail service into Douglas County will have to wait a little longer.
The Regional Transportation District board voted 14-1 Tuesday, Aug. 19, to scale back the 10-year, $5.2 billion mass transit plan called FasTracks.
The revised plan splits FasTracks into two phases to save $1 billion. Phase I includes $4.2 billion worth of improvements tied to a voter-approved sales tax question that could appear on the ballot in November 2004. If approved, the Phase I projects will take 10 years to complete.
The remaining $1 billion worth of projects become part of Phase II. Those projects will be put on the shelf until money becomes available to do them.
Included in the Phase II projects is the extension of the Southwest Corridor Light Rail system into Highlands Ranch.
The $5.2 billion FasTracks program was revised due to the sagging local economy's impact on sales tax revenues, which the district relies on for funding. Scaling back the projects will save the district $1 billion.
Other impacts of the new FasTracks plan are:
* Ending the west corridor light-rail line at the Federal Center (Union and U.S. 6) rather than continuing to the Jefferson County administration and court center in Golden.
* Ending a west-area rail line in Old Town Arvada rather than continuing it to the Ward Road Park-n-Ride.
* Ending a transit corridor along Interstate 25 that would be served by light rail or diesel-powered trains at 124th Avenue instead of continuing it to 160th Avenue.
* Ending a commuter-rail line in Boulder rather than continuing it to Longmont.
By By:
Highlands Ranch residents waiting for an extension of light rail service into Douglas County will have to wait a little longer.
The Regional Transportation District board voted 14-1 Tuesday, Aug. 19, to scale back the 10-year, $5.2 billion mass transit plan called FasTracks.
The revised plan splits FasTracks into two phases to save $1 billion. Phase I includes $4.2 billion worth of improvements tied to a voter-approved sales tax question that could appear on the ballot in November 2004. If approved, the Phase I projects will take 10 years to complete.
The remaining $1 billion worth of projects become part of Phase II. Those projects will be put on the shelf until money becomes available to do them.
Included in the Phase II projects is the extension of the Southwest Corridor Light Rail system into Highlands Ranch.
The $5.2 billion FasTracks program was revised due to the sagging local economy's impact on sales tax revenues, which the district relies on for funding. Scaling back the projects will save the district $1 billion.
Other impacts of the new FasTracks plan are:
* Ending the west corridor light-rail line at the Federal Center (Union and U.S. 6) rather than continuing to the Jefferson County administration and court center in Golden.
* Ending a west-area rail line in Old Town Arvada rather than continuing it to the Ward Road Park-n-Ride.
* Ending a transit corridor along Interstate 25 that would be served by light rail or diesel-powered trains at 124th Avenue instead of continuing it to 160th Avenue.
* Ending a commuter-rail line in Boulder rather than continuing it to Longmont.
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